Q&A with Howard Megdal

As the recent play by the Mets can best be described as "anemic" and a "downward spiral," many fans will clamor for change in the decision makers running the team. One such fan, Howard Megdal, wants to direct that dialogue as he runs for the office in an election. While Howard is fully aware that the team's General Manager is not an elected position, he hopes to encapsulate the job qualifications sought by Mets fans in search of the team's next General Manager.

Howard was kind enough to take a few minutes from his busy campaign trail to chat with yours truly:

Matthew Artus: How did you go about becoming a Mets fan?

Howard Megdal: I became a Mets fan the way so many others have- through my father. I
was raised in South Jersey, but my father had been a Brooklyn Dodgers
fan turned New York Mets fan raised in Newark, NJ.

I began to have
some consciousness of the team in 1985, at age 5. But by 1986, I'd
become obsessed. Mornings were spent poring over the sports sections of
the Philadelphia Inquirer and New York Times. Evenings were spent with
the Mets on the radio, or on special occasions, on WOR Channel 9. And by
the fall, I'd race home to catch the playoff games.

One that
solidified my connection to the Mets: Game 3, 1986 NLCS. My father and I
watched it together in the living room.

When Lenny Dykstra hit the
game-winning home run, my father, not normally prone to such outbursts,
got up and danced. Then we took a trip to a book sale at the Camden
County Library, and I bought a pile
of books- all on baseball- that reached my head. I was hooked.

Matthew Artus: Since South Jersey is essentially a suburb of Philadelphia, how did you
cope with being a
Mets fan surrounded by Phillies fans in their native habitat?

Howard Megdal: Well, Phillies fans, like bears, need to be treated like largely
unintelligent beings capable of acting with brute force at any moment
over a sandwich while not wearing pants. So I would say I acted... with
great wariness.

Matthew: What does a golden era of Mets baseball look like? Have you seen one in your lifetime?

Howard: A golden era of Mets baseball: premier stars on the team, some developed
through the farm system, some acquired at the start of their primes for
prospects or via free agency. Drafting includes many players signed
over slot, adding a ton of high-end talent into the farm system (and
facilitating the deals mentioned in previous sentence). Other players
with upside are acquired when teams tire of them. Fan giveaways are
plentiful, provided to all fans (not just first 25,000) and additional
efforts are made to bring back Banner Day and Old Timers' Day. And
information about the team is disseminated quickly, without constant
contradiction, and willingly.

While there have been periods of success-
1984-1990 comes closest to this ideal- clearly, that time didn't include all of the above.

Matthew: What specifically about the 1984-1990 Mets represents the idea of a
golden era? And how far away is that ideal from being realized again?

Howard: Well, two parts. The winning, of course, but the farm system brimming with both stars and useful parts.

Matthew: The tenets of your campaign are logic, transparency, and passion. How do
you intend to allocate these tenets if you are elected General Manager?

Howard: Well, they overlap. Let's take the Jenrry Mejia situation, for example.
LOGIC comes into play in that I'd have chosen to use him, from the start
of the season, as a starting pitcher in Double-A. Why? Short-term, he'd
had no success above single-A, and I want a pitcher to make that jump
to Double-A first.

Logic. Transparency. Passion. The campaign marches on.

It also gives him the chance to increase his innings
gradually, and to learn to develop his pitches. Long-term, it allows for
the opportunity to develop a frontline starter, one who is much more
valuable than a late-inning reliever.

But the transparency would be
making such a plan clear to the fans, and enumerating those reasons.
When the buzz began this spring to bring him north, I'd have
repeated those reasons for anyone who asked.

And passion means that
decisions about Mejia wouldn't be made with just 2010 in mind. If you
care about the team as I do,
2013, 2015 matter quite a bit as well. And long after my tenure as
General Manager ends, I'll be in the stands with my wife and daughter,
caring just as much.

Matthew: As I perceive it, part of the role of the General Manager is to cope
with the inherent conflicts that arise from your tents. Passion can
cloud logic, much as it did when the Mets shoehorned Piazza into first
base because he was a liability behind the plate and no one had the
heart to say goodbye. Transparency can cloud logic, which can lead to
misreading the market for Oliver Perez because you present your best
offer upfront instead of remaining silent and reading the market. How do
you intend to rectify the conflict of being a fan versus being the
hatchet man?

Howard: Well, it is something I face as a writer, and separating logic from
passion is at the center of how I operate. For example, Luis Castillo
has been a terrific resource for me in the clubhouse. I have gotten
perspective from him on many occasions, and I admire how hard he worked
to resurrect his career.

Via MegdalforGM.comHoward Megdal wants YOU to vote for him.

But that didn't stop me from calling for the
Mets to replace him at second base this offseason. I took no pleasure
from it- but my role in writing is to diagnose what is best for the
team. That is every bit as true for when I become the General Manager.

Matthew: You mentioned that your tenet of transparency involves clarifying and
enumerating your plans to the fan base. As Mets GM, how would you go
about getting your message to the fans?

Howard: Well, a few ways are immediate. There's no reason I shoudn't have both a
weekly scheduled presser with the media, and a weekly webchat to
address questions from fans. I think that, far from being a waste of
time, this would represent a critical part of the job description.

Further,
all major injuries, assuming permission of the player, would be handled
by the doctor specifically addressing it in concert with me and the
player. Medical questions would be handled by the doctor,
baseball-related questions by me, personal responses from the player.
One spot, one stream of information, no crossed signals.

Matthew: If you could undo one player transaction in the history of the Mets franchise, what move would that be and why?

Howard: That's an easy one. June 15, 1977. Tom Seaver should have won every
single game he pitched in the big leagues with the Mets. His no-hitter
should have come as a Met. And you can be damn sure he would have been
protected from the free agent compensation draft in 1983, too.

Matthew: Why the Seaver trade and not the Nolan Ryan trade? Couldn't we have
settled for his 7 no-hitters? Or what about letting Strawberry leave via
free agency? Why does undoing the Seaver trade trump them all?

Howard: Oh, there were other trades that had longer-term impact. Obviously, they
missed out on six years of prime Seaver, and 20 years of Ryan.

But I think Mets fans deserved to have Tom Seaver for his entire career.

I
still remember hearing about Strawberry signing with Los Angeles
through the static on WFAN in my room. I was devastated- he was my
favorite player by far. Sadly, though, if you look at the production he
gave Los Angeles, that 4 years, $18 million wasn't a great deal.

Matthew: What are the ideal qualities you
look for in a manager? And are there any manager candidates you'd bring with you upon taking the Office of General Manager?

Howard: In answer to the managerial question, my qualifications are simple: I
want a manager who relates well to people, who can communicate with the
press, but most importantly, who follows basic sound baseball
principles: to not overwork a bullpen, to distinguish lefty from righty,
to have the best hitters at the top of the lineup, and so on. Seems
simple, but apparently, given the recent Met managers, it isn't.

Matthew: Why should Mets fans elect you as the next General Manager?

Howard: I won't be perfect. But I will apply the principles of LOGIC,
TRANSPARENCY and PASSION to every move made on behalf of the New York
Mets, both in terms of personnel and the way fans are treated. I have a
years-long paper trail that can provide information on how I'd run the
team, and I will be accountable to you on a regular basis, both through
the media and in directly answering questions. Give me your
mandate, and I will make the Mets consistent winners for the long-term,
so after my term as GM is over, we can all appreciate the Mets from the
stands at Citi Field.

Thanks for the insight, Howard.

You can review Howard's campaign platform as well as locate the current primary blogs by visiting his campaign website, MegdalforGM.com.------

I can't bring myself to comment on the recent play of the Mets at this time. My Mom always taught me that if I have nothing nice to say, I shouldn't say anything at all.